Sulcata tortoises dig extensive burrows during the monsoon season, in preparation for when they will need to seek refuge from the extreme heat of the dry season, as well as escape from the high midday temperatures that occur during the rest of the year. Sulcata burrows can extend horizontally well over 30 feet, with a vertical depth of more than 20 feet in many cases. The depth of a burrow provides a safe environment with relatively stable temperatures for a tortoise, despite the huge temperature fluctuations that occur outside of the burrow. The depth of the burrow also provides humidity levels that are commonly over 50 percent.

Sulcata burrows usually include multiple chambers and connecting tunnels, and other animals may seek refuge in them along with the tortoises—animals that may serve as a food source for hungry sulcatas during lean times. Like most tortoises, sulcatas are opportunistic feeders in the wild. They feed mostly on the abundant growth that follows the rainy season, consuming grasses, broad leaf weeds, leaves and fruit from trees and bushes.

After the wet season, they will feed on almost any organic matter they can find, including dried plants and leaves that remain during the dry season. During times of little to no plant growth, sulcatas have been known to also consume small branches, tree bark, animal feces and carrion.

During the height of the dry season, sulcatas remain mostly inactive, and they are seldom, if ever, seen outside their burrows. When the rainy season arrives they will emerge to forage and replace lost reserves for reproduction. Breeding and egg laying usually takes place at this time, although there is not an exclusive breeding season. Low population densities of male sulcatas result in breeding throughout the year, whenever a male encounters a female (which is not very often). Such encounters occur most frequently during the beginning of the rainy season and toward the end, when sulcata tortoises are the most active. It has been reported that nesting in the wild often occurs at the base of bushes, where a female tortoise may lay as many as 24 eggs, though fewer are usually deposited. This typically occurs from November to May.

There is a distinct correlation between the number of sulcata eggs deposited and the size of the eggs. As a rule, smaller clutch sizes generally result in larger eggs, while larger clutch sizes result in smaller eggs. Depending on the time of year they were deposited, sulcata eggs commonly take 100 to 200 days for the hatchlings to emerge. Baby sulcatas are fairly large and quick when they leave the nest. The growth rate for the first two years can be relatively rapid, depending on the time year the hatchlings leave the nest, as well as available resources. Young sulcata tortoises can attain weights slightly in excess of 2 pounds after the first year, and nearly 7 pounds after their second year.

Housing and Care :

Keeping a pet sulcata tortoise is straightforward, but there are some crucial considerations, the main one being this tortoise’s large size, mentioned earlier, along with the fact that sulcatas are very active. It can take a sulcata more than 20 years to reach its full size, but with good care it can attain it much sooner, and coupled with its activity level, a large sulcata can quickly become a big problem if its keeper is not prepared. There are many tortoise rescues that are overwhelmed with large sulcatas that previous owners could not care for because they did realize how much time and money is involved in maintaining a full-grown sulcata.